Book picks similar to
Secret Diary of an Incurable Romantic (Um...and a closet alcoholic) by Chitrangada Mukherjee
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Coastal Summons
Katrina Thomas - 2013
Though the rest of her adoptive family scorned her as an outsider, Gram and her grandson Ian always loved Laina like she was one of their own. Now Laina is all grown up and a foster parent in her own right, to a little girl named Jada whose upcoming adoption by strangers is sure to break Laina’s heart. But Laina faces the prospect of another devastating loss when Gram’s health begins to fail. As she has so many times before, Laina turns to Ian for advice, only to find that her feelings for her handsome, warm-hearted friend have changed, deepening into a love that could transform her life...or ruin her dearest friendship.When Laina and Ian come together at the family summer home on the windswept shores of Hatteras Island, the sparks igniting between them cannot be ignored. But with stakes as high as these, can they overcome their fear of heartbreak to claim the promise of love?
A Pleasant Escape
Piyush Rohankar - 2020
A chance encounter with Sarah seems like destiny’s compensation for all his hard work. He also meets buddies for a lifetime. Their life-stories of love, regret, friendship and shattered dreams take him through Kashmir and Turkey; from brothels to hospitals; and from dingy quarters to the hallowed halls of UPSC.When life finally seems to be coming back on track, he stumbles upon a truth that is bound to change him and the rest of his life.Will Alok crack the exam, or will he be just one of the many soon-forgotten aspirants? Will a strange revelation make him see his life as A Pleasant Escape?
The Gift of Christmas Yet to Come (A St Nicholas Bay Novella)
Jo Bartlett - 2014
well, almost. As Christmas rolls round once again, she longs for a child of her own to share it with. In a town where Christmas is big business all year round, it turns out Santa Claus isn’t the only one with mysterious powers. When a psychic reveals that the answer to her future will come in red and white, Kate follows this sign. It leads her to disastrous dating agencies and demoralising dead-ends until, finally, the answer seems to be revealed. But will her search for the missing piece of her family mean she doesn't recognise the one person who's loved her from the start? Or can Kate really have it all in time for the perfect Christmas?
Dead to Them
Smita Bhattacharya - 2021
Her friends start looking for her, but quickly realize nothing is as it seems. Moira had kept devastating secrets—secrets that could wreck their lives if revealed. As days roll by, one by one, skeletons tumble out of closets, and each of Moira’s friends’ looks guilty. But did one among them hate her enough to do the worst?A nail-biting, psychological suspense thriller, Dead to Them weaves a web of deception, lies, and paranoia in the city of Mumbai, where every face hides a dark story and uncovering it can lead to disastrous consequences.
All His Own Hair
Susan Alison - 2011
Now that Sparrow, her ward, has reached nine years of age, she reckons he needs a male role model in his life. With typical efficiency she sets about finding a father-figure by drawing up a series of checklists for each candidate, and following a strict protocol for interviewing them.So far, all the contenders have failed miserably to get enough ticks in the right boxes. But Ferne is focused and nothing is going to stop her from fulfilling her responsibilities…...except maybe a saboteur out to wreck her business; drunken neighbours; her unfortunate past from which it is so difficult to escape; her estranged mother; long-lost sister; and her Jack Russell, Merrie, who is not above galloping over and nipping any prospective role models she thinks Will Not Do.Katie Fforde (best-selling rom com author and President of the Romantic Novelists' Association) said of 'All His Own Hair': 'Susan Alison handles difficult issues with quirky humour and uplifting results.'(To give you some idea of length - 'White Lies and Custard Creams' is 83,700 words long and 'All His Own Hair' is 87,300 words long.)Susan Alison is the Katie Fforde Bursary Award winner for 2011. She has won competition awards for short fiction and sold numerous stories to commercial publications. Her fiction concentrates on the relationships humans forge with each other (and quite often with their dogs). She is a freelance artist.Jill Mansell (best-selling rom com author) said of 'White Lies and Custard Creams': "Susan Alison has written a lovely, quirky romp packed with off-the-wall characters - original, intriguing and great fun!"
Hybrid Hearts
Romy Lockhart - 2022
When Amanda's life is put in danger, Cheryl and Jillian rush to help their best friends. Working as a team, there's more to be gained than lost.Hybrid Hearts is a steamy, suspenseful paranormal romance novella featuring all of the main characters from the first four books in the Hybrid Shifters world. Be warned, there are spoilers in this story if you've never read the novels Vicious Love, Shifting Hearts, Hybrid Hearts and Runaway Mate.
A Hard Man is Good to Find
James W. Lewis - 2011
Despite the exceptional qualities and his obvious interest in her, things are moving too slow between them. Unlike most men who can’t wait to get in her pants, this particular man refuses to take things to the next level.DARYL JACKSON has grown tired of the nightclub scene and wants to settle down, but he has a secret that always seems to interrupt any potential love connection once he reveals it. He believes Michelle is the ideal woman, but can she handle the truth?After six weeks of dating, and still no attempt from him to get her “horizontal,” Michelle grows sex-starved. She is driving herself crazy trying to figure out Daryl’s problem! During a weekend getaway in Palm Springs, Michelle finally puts an end to the what’s-wrong-with-Daryl guessing game and demands to know what’s up. Not only does Daryl answer all her questions, Michelle learns first hand that you really need to be careful with what you wish for!
Love in the time of Affluenza
Shunali Khullar Shroff - 2019
The story explores the lives of three women as understood from the eyes of its protagonist Natasha, a happily married mother of three. She begins to ask some difficult questions about her own life after she stumbles upon her closest friend Trisha's affair.'Finally an immensely enjoyable story about Mumbai's rich that, like all good stories, rings so true, with its adorable and suspiciously familiar characters.' - Manu Joseph
The Amish Neighbor: A Suspense Romance
Katie Fisher - 2018
A single dad who wants to help her. A psychologist who feels lost. Can they help each other and find love? Single dad Sol Walker never thought that his daughter would ever be traumatized. But when his neighbor is murdered in front of Abigail, he’s thrown into a police investigation and Abigail has become withdrawn and silent. Out of options, he reaches out to psychologist Maddie Sinclair to help her. Maddie feels utterly lost in life. Having grown up not knowing if love is real or just something people talk about, she certainly can’t understand why people would say that there is a God who loves them. There is something about Sol, though, that starts to knock down the walls she has built around herself. He’s so quietly confident, so full of faith. Maddie knows that it’s unprofessional for her to develop feelings for him, but she soon finds herself imagining what a life with him would be like. Sol, too, finds himself drawn to Maddie. He knows nothing can happen, though. She’s Englisch, and he would have to leave his faith for her. That is something he cannot do. But when the case takes a turn and they have to go on the run together, feelings become undeniable. Can Maddie help Abigail when her own life is put in danger? Will Sol’s faith be strong enough to protect them all? This is a 25,000 words stand-alone Amish mystery romance with an HEA.
Sin Is the New Love
Abir Mukherjee - 2018
When her favourite author's autobiography lands on her table - which has confessions of his heinous crimes, illegal businesses and few eminent others as his partners in crime - she doesn't know if it's real or someone's trap. It could get her a big breakthrough, but little does she know that it would turn her world upside down completely. Her morbid curiosity pulls her into the depth of a conspiracy. She finds herself in the centre of various mishaps and murders, as if someone wants to lead the way. Driven by her childhood friend Samim's encouragement, and watched over by the ever so charming ACP Rathore, she has to jeopardize her life to find the brutal truth of her past. Touching, thrilling and deeply mysterious, Sin Is the New Love is the journey of a girl who stumbles upon the truth about her origin while chasing her dream.
Small is Big - Volume 3
Rafaa Dalvi - 2019
You’re thirteen now. I was eight when I got married. You’ll never look this beautiful ever again.”“I will Ammi, when I wear a school uniform.”If you like thrillers, this micro tale is for you-I always assumed that my neighbour’s daughter knew the word ‘Eight’ only until my dog went missing and she said ‘Nine’.And if you like six-word stories, this tale is for you-Woke up in hospital. Failed again.In fact, there are 100 such small tales that will have a big impact on you.So what are you waiting for? Scroll to the top of this page, buy the book and start reading today.Rafaa's micro tales are absolute gems. The journey is short but its impact is everlasting. This one deserves to be read by all.Sanhita BaruahAuthor of ‘The Art of Grieving’ and ‘The Art of Letting Go’Are you interested in unconventional storytelling? How about a story where the beginning, middle and the end are on the same page? A narrative that makes you frown on page 1, nod in agreement on page 2 and chuckle on page 3?How about reading short fiction then? I highly recommend Small is Big by Rafaa Dalvi. The long and short of fiction in endearing small portions!Rickie KhoslaAuthor of ‘The Imperative Subterfuge’ and ‘Pretty Vile Girl’The book has something for everyone. It has humor – a few of slap stick variety, playing on puns, it has punch where you get a most unexpected twist, it has philosophy, it has romance and it has horror – stories that chill your spine.T.F. CarthickAuthor of ‘Carthick’s Unfairy Tales’ and ‘More Unfairy Tales’About the Author:Rafaa Dalvi tries to escape from the mundane with words and contemplates about befriending the voices in his head. He dreams about changing the world, one smile at a time.Already published numerous times, his stories can be read in the anthologies – Curtain Call (editor), Kaleidoscope, Myriad Tales, and many more. He has also written three volumes of ‘Small is Big’, which is a collection of 100 micro tales. He’s the recipient of Indian Bloggers League Booker Prize 2013.
Friends ForNever
Melissa Baldwin - 2016
She’s focused on her career and determined to leave her tiny cubicle behind for a fabulous corner office! But when a new co-worker, a friendship drama, and a hot workplace crush collide, Erin finds it harder and harder to focus. Especially when that crush on the oh-so-yummy Aiden Thomas starts to materialize into what feels like a magical relationship. Erin's life seems to finally be heading in the right direction...until suddenly friends aren't such great friends after all, her magical relationship hits a bumpy road, and her career could be derailed by it all. Erin learns a lesson the hard way: Sometimes people aren’t who they seem to be. With her happiness on the line, can Erin rise above her disappointments and create the life she's always dreamed of or will she be stuck being Friends ForNever? "Packed with love, laughter, and deliciously devious frenemies, Friends ForNever is an entertaining romantic comedy for the keeper shelf!" ~ Gemma Halliday, New York Times & USA Today bestselling author
Wedding Tiers / Sowing Secrets / Chocolate Wishes
Trisha Ashley - 2013
It seems like it’s going to be always the cakemaker, never the bride until charming photographer Noah arrives on the scene…Sowing Secrets tells the story of Fran, who seems to have it all with her lovely husband and cottage in the country. That is until ex-boyfriend Tom turns up and Fran’s perfect world is turned upside down.Life is sweet for chocolate maker Chloe in Chocolate Wishes. That is until the new vicar Raffy arrives in the village; Chloe’s first love and the man who broke her heart…
From Ashes To Dreams
Rashmi Trivedi - 2018
Naina was at such a crossroad! An orphan, she did not have much to look forward to in life, until she fell in love. Love gave her wings and she started to fly, only to come crashing down as the wind beneath her wings turned into a storm. She tries putting an end to her now wretched existence, but fate has some other plans for her. She comes to know that she has limited time to live and decides to start living everyday instead of merely surviving. She lives every moment without worrying about the future she does not have or the past that could not be undone. She falls in love once again, this time with life! Will fate respect her fortitude?